Having Lunch with Jerry Seinfeld for a Great Cause

Host Jerry Seinfeld and Founder and President of GOOD+ Foundation Jessica Seinfeld at the New York Fatherhood Lunch to benefit GOOD+ Foundation in New York City. (Photo: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for GOOD+)

Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld recently hosted GOOD+ Foundation’s 2016 Fatherhood Lunch at The Palm Restaurant in Tribeca, which raised nearly $275,000 for the charity. The Foundation focuses on empowering dads with positive parenting and discipline strategies. Since its inception, GOOD+ Foundation’s Fatherhood Initiative has supported over 20,000 families.

During the lunch Jerry Seinfeld described how many fathers who seek help from a fatherhood program don’t have the resources or materials to create the best environment for their families. With the services and products donated by the GOOD+ Foundation, many men are able to get the long-term support needed to help lift the family out of poverty.

“We realized we needed to address the missing component – the fathers,” said Seinfeld. “Your father is half of who you are. They are an important piece of the puzzle. We knew if we could get fathers back into the lives of their kids, we could really stabilize this environment.” In his remarks, he added, “Men are terrible at talking about being a husband and being a father. A gigantic hurdle is encouraging these men talk to each other, share their stories and realize they are not alone. I feel great that I’m able to help other men get into this experience of being a father.”

One of the fathers, who has personally benefited from the program, addressed the gathering to share his experience and the successes he has achieved since he started working with the Children’s Institute Inc.’s Project Fatherhood in Los Angeles and began receiving donations from GOOD+ Foundation.

The organization recently completed an independent program evaluation by LeSar Development Consultants showing the impact of GOOD+ Foundation donations on both fathers and the programs served: 82 percent of fathers reported that GOOD+ donations improved their relationship with their child’s mother or relatives, and the same number reported the donations made them feel more like a dad to their child.

Also present was GOOD+ Foundation’s new Fatherhood Program Manager Jomael Young who saw the GOOD+ Fatherhood Initiative develop from its inception, having served as the Program Leader for the Fathers First Initiative in the Rockaways – a GOOD+ Foundation partner – for more than 10 years.The Fatherhood Initiative helps fathers with counseling, job training, relationship workshops, and actively engaging in their children’s lives. GOOD+ Foundation has distributed nearly 500,000 items to over 20,000 families through 19 father engagement programs.

The event was presented by Johnson & Johnson and Ralph Lauren, with additional support by Crackle. The event was underwritten for the fourth time by Bruce Bozzi and Palm Restaurant.